Whay Does My 2 Year Old Bite Her Nails Isnt She Too Young?

My daughter is the same age and does the same thing. I cna't believe it either. I've tried having her bite other things. We've bought all kinds of teething rings and sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't. Try to notice when it is that she does it and work around. (Easier said than done!) I noticed my child does it when she is bored and hungry. So now I try to cut her off at the pass. honestly, I cut her nails for the first time in 4 months yesterday and it was just such miniscule amounts, I just wanted to give her less to chew off!

Hi V.. My son started biting his nail/fingers a few months ago (at 29 months or so). It's clear that this is some sort of soothing technique he is using to calm himself (when he's upset or crying, or during our calming bedtime routine).

We bought a toy specifically designed for him to chew on. It's a "mouthing therapy tool" that Speech Therapists often give to children that like to exert jaw pressure or need extra oral stimulation. (Totally safe -- cannot be swallowed.) I can get him to use this toy instead of his fingers about 60% of the time. If you are interested in a website link to this product, let me know.

My 2 y/o son will be 3 in June and he bites too!! I just discovered it when I had not had to trim his nails in a while. I was a nail biter as a child, however I was not and am not a nervous person. I definitely thought he was too young, but I guess not. It drives me nuts, but have not been able to discourage him so far. Nothing worked for me either and I still pick at my nails and bite them from time to time, but nothing like when I was younger.

I don't think you are ever too young. 20 years ago, when I was younger my mom did babysitting. One of the kids who was under two was bitting his nails while he slept and sometimes when he was awake. He would bit them until he would bleed or worse sometimes. My mom use to try and put shocks on his hands when she would put him down for a nap. She seemed that it was possibly do to stress that was going on in the house. Good Luck.

My little girl started biting her nails at 2.5, and it was bad. Her cuticles would bleed and get infected. She once even attempted to bite my nails when she had none of her own left to chew... When we really thought about it, the behavior had started when she moved into a new classroom at daycare. We talked about it, got the Thum polish, and tried all sorts of incentives to no avail. We moved her to a new preschool about 9 months later, and within 3 months she had stopped biting them. We kept talking about it, and reminding her when she was doing it, and one day she just stopped. It was truly her reaction to a situation she was uncomfortable in and had no way to tell us about...

Good luck - it used to make me cry out of sadness for her and frustration. I know it is hard to watch.

It is strange the habits that kids get into , my daughter started biting her nails about a year ago (she was 3) , she still does it now and she also bites her toe nails!...it is gross but no matter how many times we have said not to do it , and she also bit her toe nail so low it bled she still does it....hoping she will grow out of it eventually , not sure what to suggest sorry!

my 2yr old daughter does the same thing and neither of us bite our nails! we have no idea how it started and it is driving us nuts!

Oh V., i feel for you, i really do. i have been struggleing w/ this since my little girl was the same age. if you can, do any-thing you can now to stop her. the results of my daughter doing it for 2 yrs. now is terrible. i feel so bad for her. her nails are just not pretty. she has even gotten to the point 2 times already where she has gotten her nails infected and we have to go to the dr. to get it drained and then some anti-biotics. not fun at all.
my husband too bites his nails, and i think that is where she picked it up from.

my suggestions that i have tried are

get her 2 squishy hand size ball, almost like a hacky sack type ball. 1 for the house and 1 for the car. and when you see her putting her finger's in her mouth, give her the ball and let her keep her hands/finger's busy w/ that.

if you can at the time she is biting her nails, maybe suggest she come play playdoh? or have her come talk to you, or come BUSY her hands in any other way.

i notice my daughter doing it while watching t.v. and while driving in the car. i don't think that it nessassarily means that our kids are nervous kids, they just need to busy their hands in another way.

i have also tried that yucky tasting nail polish, i got it from walgreens. that worked for a bit, but then she caught on.

so i hope you can get her to stop. it is a horrible habit to have and to get someone so little to not do it. good luck.
C.

I have had this problem on and off with my 3 year old for a year now. Her pediatrician said it is a learned habit (her aunt bites her nails - argh) and one that is difficult to break. Also that it comes out at high stress times (my daughter started at the same time her sister was born).

We have been most successful in making a sticker chart and having her place a sticker on it each day she doesn't bite. I file her nails so it is more difficult for her to do so. Also I have threatened not to paint her toe nails if it keeps up... So far no permenant solution, but these trick have helped.
Good luck, this is a tricky problem, but apparently very normal at this age.